It was somewhere in mid-2012. I was told by my
office to go to Delhi from Kolkata. And from there I was supposed to go to
Haryana and Punjab with my seniors on a marketing trip to sell pig iron. As I was
rummaging through websites to book the train tickets for my journey, I was told
that I would go to Delhi by plane along with my two seniors and the company
would arrange it.
One of my seniors said that air journey was kind of
reward for me for my good work done (good selling of pig iron). I didn’t
believe it at first (as decisions can be changed in seconds in private
companies) that the company was so kind to sponsor my air trip, because some
fortnight ago there were talks of me being thrown out of the company due to
non-performance (the yardsticks of non-performance are drawn out by the
employer in such a way that even if you work tooth and nail and achieve targets
reasonably, there are heavy chances of you embracing the tag of a non-performer).
Though I had sold some good chunk of pig iron but the threat of losing the job
loomed large over me.
Anyways, ecstatic to go by plane for the first time
in life, I reached the airport next day. After some initial formalities, I
boarded the plane. First time in life, I had boarded a plane. My heart was racing;
I wanted to cry in exhilaration. But I controlled myself. Maintaining a somber
look, I sat on the window seat allotted to me, my seniors sat beside me.
I put on the belt and when the plane started to soar,
I felt as if something was dragging me up in the sky with utmost force putting behind
my waist. It was something that I was feeling very first time in life. As the
plane reached a certain altitude, it started travelling at a horizontal level.
My adrenaline rush subsided a bit but the exploration of the new world was on.
And as I watched the scenes outside the window of the plane, I was amazed. I
was seeing clouds swimming just beside me. It was all -together a new world for
me and I was loving the world outside the window to a tee. Had there not been
the glass on the window, I would have stuck my hand out, and squeezed the
clouds to drench my hands.
After an hour or so the plane landed in Delhi. An
SUV was waiting for us. We went to the head office in Delhi.My seniors went to the meeting with top
management of the company. I was stopped from going to the meeting and told to
wait outside saying that the top management was not happy with me so it was
better for me to stay out of the meeting.
After an hour or so, my seniors came out… I had a
feeling that something was cooking. Anyways, acting as if I was a total
birdbrain who can’t surmise the undercurrent…I continued the journey with my seniors
(as if there was any other way out). We
moved towards Haryana in the SUV.
We went to several Pig Iron dealers and businessmen
in Haryana and Punjab. Starting from Samhalkha
to Ludhiana and Jalandhar. I was seeing the new places and meeting new people. I
was kind of enjoying it. The farm houses and the foods were really exhilarating.
I was meeting such rich people for the first time in
my life.
We went to one businessman who introduced his son to
us. His son had done MBA. And the father proudly announced that he would open
one furnace factory(where the pig iron is melted to mold new products) for him.
And I was thinking that how lucky his son was as
after doing an MBA he was to become owner of a company and after doing an MBA,
here I was running from pillarto the post,
from one businessman to the other to secure just a salary at the end of the
month and that too was in danger. What a dichotomy!
When we were at a different businessman’s place, the
conversation on real estate started after we have had our talks for pig iron. Here
the businessman, comparing between the situations of real estate in India and
Britain, said “Nowadays, it is more beneficial to book a bungalow in London.”
And I was like, we, middle class, slog off whole life and still end up retiring
in a rented accommodation, owing to exorbitant prices of homes in India, and
here he was buying homes in the U.K. But then such is India for us: a coherent scene
knitted with incoherent threads.
Anyways, the whole tour ended on a fruitful note, we
gathered some orders. I was hoping that this would help my stint in the
company.
As we were returning back from Haryana to Delhi, one
of my seniors started getting
philosophical sitting on the back seat of the SUV, I was on the front seat
beside the driver. He told “Life is full of opportunities Neeraj, be positive
in life… ups and downs come in life…”
I was feeling sleepy due to tiredness of the journey
of the whole day and it was around midnight also. But his words made me alert, I
knew what he meant. I knew my time was up in the company.
Anyways, controlling my emotions I replied, “I agree
sir.”
Our SUV was racing at optimum speed. At one place my
senior advised the driver to stop. We all got down and went to a place called Sukhdev Dhaba. And I was amazed to see a
throng of people binging on pure north Indian delicacies even after mid- night.
It seemed like a gala night. People had come there with families also. To think
to go out in a mid-night for a dinner with family in a small city like mine
might sound bizarre, where most eateries close down as the clock strikes 9 p.m.
But things were very normal at the dhaba.
In the dhaba, the night was not sleeping. It was chirping with the chomping
of mouth.
After a week from the return of the marketing tour, I
was officially told to furnish my resignation. But the tour gave me open-
mindedness and opportunities to traverse between different worlds that I would not
have got otherwise.
First opportunity was to be among the world of clouds (which
I had only seen from far away earth until then), second was about an enlightenment
that even if there are homeless Britons, yet the homes are always available for
rich Indians in the U.K, and the third was about the revelation that mid-night
is just as perfect as an afternoon for a binge.
When I woke up today, I found myself in an arid
land.The air was bereft of any moist. It
seemed as if every gush of air, laced with burning arrows of sunrays, was pricking
my body, In short intervals there were sand storms spiraling up and blanketing
me completely with sand. There was no sign of a single human, a single tree or a
single animal.
Dusting the sand off my body, I started trudging through
the smoldering sand with bare feet in search of water as I was feeling really parched.
My throat was bone dry. I saw a small pool of water some ten steps ahead. I raced
towards that. But as I reached the place, the pool of water moved some few
steps ahead. I was flabbergasted. And then it dawned upon me that it was just a
mirage about which I had read in school books.
Frazzled by strolling amid sand, I sat down in the
shadow of a big rock to take shelter from scorching sun. As I was resting, I heard
some noise of digging. “Someone must be digging for water,” I thought in my
mind. I got up and scuttled towards the digging sound.
As I reached there, I saw an old man with long white
hair and beard digging the sand frantically. Some laptops and mobile phones were scattered
around the ditch.
“What are you doing?” I asked the old man.
“Can’t you see?” asked the old man in return.
“I can see…but…anyways…do you know where can I find
some water…I am really thirsty?”
“What do you think I am searching in the sand? I am also
thirsty and thirstier than you,” said the old man in rude tone.
“But why are you digging laptops and mobile phones
from the sand don’t you know the place where we can dig some water?”
“I am digging laptops and mobiles because you loved only
these, had you loved water, I would not have to be thirsty for fifty years or
so?” replied the old man.
“What? you are thirsty for fifty years?”
“Yes, since the year this beautiful city died due to
lack of water in June of 2049 to today in June of 2099, I am thirsty,” replied the
old man.
“What? It is 2099? I can’t believe it. When last
night I slept, it was March 2018,” I opposed.
“Seeing is believing dear, can you see any trace of
year 2018 around you?” asked the old man.
“But which city it was?”
“It was a tech city… Bengaluru, in India, people in
the city cared more for computers, mobiles and modern technics, but they forgot
to take care for water. They forgot to save water. They forgot to respect
water. They believed more in cutting chai but forgot to include #CuttingPani in
their lifestyle. Gradually, they started dying due to dearth of water and
finally they evaporated from this world.”
“I don’t think that people of Bengaluru are such
careless fellows, they respect water.”
“Had they respected, you would not have been seeing
such dessert around you… and leave about people, do you respect water? When you
had kept the tap open while shaving… had you realized that it was a way of
wasting water? and when you had thrown the half- drunk bottle of water in the
dustbin after your train journey from Patna last month…had you realized that it
was a waste of water?” asked the old man in stern voice.
“How do you know all these things? Who are you? And how
come you are alive after so many years of human extinction in Bengaluru?”
“I am the one who is cursed to be alive till the end
of this world…I am Ashwathama,” said the
old man removing the hairs dangling on his forehead to wipe something.
As he removed his dangling hair, my eyes went
directly on his forehead that was oozing with pus and blood.
I moved ahead to touch the mythological character, but
fell from my bed with a thud.
“What happened?” cried my mother from kitchen.
“Nothing!” I replied to assure her by trying to make
my voice as unruffled as possible. My mind was in a spin and body was drenched
with sweat. As I managed myself to get back on my bed and rested for a while, I
got reminded of a Livepure initiative to save water. Seeing the gruesome future
of the city in my dream, I then and there signed the petition. You are also
invited to do so. Click here and commit yourself to save water: https://www.change.org/p/cuttingpaani
Language is a beautiful tool to express one’s feelings. The world
is full of languages where the harmony of brain and tongue belts out magical
sounds. If you understand a language it is good but even if you don’t
understand a language there is an enigmatic beauty in the incomprehensibility
of it. It makes you startle at how others are speaking a language easily and
fluently whereas you can only grab the undulating sound of the language.
I work for a multinational company and there my bosses are
from France and Belgium, and they speak fluent French. I can only grab the
sound of the language. Though once I had given a serious try to learn the French
language but couldn’t be consistent. Now I find it amazing that on the one hand
there are words incomprehensible to me make true sense to the others
understanding it.
And why go far to France to understand incomprehensible
beauty of language, in India itself there are several languages and dialects that
are incomprehensible for the part of country where they are not spoken. But despite
their inexplicitness their beauty remains intact for the people who speak them.
Nowadays, there is a movement to blacken out ‘Hindi’ names from stations in a
southern state of India. My opinion is that language is no poison that will
contaminate culture of any place; it only provides a new medium of expression.
You can’t find everything translated in one language, there is knowledge
available in other languages too that you might be bereft of... if you don't allow the access of that language to you.
When one speaks ‘Kannada’,
one uses the same ‘vernmala’
consisting of K,Kha,Gha as hindi,so why there is repulsion against
‘Hindi ’. After all the base of both the
languages is ‘Sanskrit’. I hope there
comes a day in India when hatred in the name of language transmutes into respect
for all languages irrespective of their regional or national character.
Here steel is melt with the heat of blood, sweat and courage.
And gold, silver, and bronze are crafted with sheer determination to only
excel.
Bodies making somersaults in the air, water and on earth are
there to write new chapter in the history of humanity. They are not there to make
the records but to break the boundaries of limitation of human efforts.
Every body part works in a rhythm to achieve a goal. The heart,
brain, eyes, hands, and legs are all channelized and focused to design a new
and unforgettable moment in history. Here not only winning but participating is
also a matter of huge respect. Every participant represents their country and
with their total commitment they participate in the games to prove their
mettle.
To kiss the medal is dream of every contestant, but
finishing last is by no means any mean feat in these games. The games are so
majestic that here you can stay behind but loser is none. You might not win a
medal but no one can snatch you the privilege of being part such a huge
platform.
When you go home, you don’t go empty handed but with bundle of
experience of yourself and others to prepare you better for the next time. Don’t
forget, life is about hope and there is always a next time in life.
I had been becoming a bit plumpy so I had joined a jim. But
it was not being able to shed my extra plump. Because I was a diehard fan of phuchka and rosogullas. My colleagues
used to tease me that I will turn into a girl if I eat more phuchkas. But no taunting ever dettered me from plunging
into the scrumptious and mouth - watering
phuchkas.
And my cravings for sweet rosogullas had sent me on the borderline of being a diabetic. And
now I had to think twice about putting my fingers on the spongy entities.
One day I was going through newspaper and saw an ad of
sugar-free natura. Since I had to cut down on my rosogulla intake, I decided to make something sweet with the
sugar-free natura. I looked around my kitchen and could find nothing
interesting to cook. Then I moved to my
refrigerator to quench my thirst and here I got answer for my search: carrots. I decided to make gajar ka halwa
with them to satiate my craving of something sweet.
And when I had the first spoon of steaming gajar
ka halwa , it felt devine. Here I am sharing the recipe with you of the Gajar ka Halwa.
First put one teaspoon ghee in kadahi and let it become hot and then put the grated
carrots in it. Roast it for few minutes and then put sugar-free natura 2 teaspoons (or according to your taste)stir
it for two times so that the sugar-free natura gets mingled into the gajar . Now pour the milk and stir till
milk is soaked up by the gajar . When
milk is soaked up by gajar the take it out in a bowl and garnish it with
cashew and almonds.
I used to live in Mumbai,my parents ; in Pune. I was a
successful banker in my career. My life was going on the full throttle. My
girlfriend used to work in the same bank.
Right from school
days I had been out side of my house. For schooling I was sent to a boarding
school. Then I went to different cities for doing my graduation and post
graduation. I was a very good student since the beginning. But playing football
was my passion. I was the part of the football team of the school. And three
years on the trot I was the highest goal scorer.
When I was in boarding, I used to send my pictures to my
parents and hand them over to them when they used to come to meet me. My mother
is a superb cook. She used to send the ‘Gajar ka halwa’ when my father used to
come to meet me. Whenever she used to come to meet me, she used to prepare
different kinds of sandwiches drenched with redness of Kissan sauce that she
used to bring with her. The lip-smacking taste is still fresh in my mouth.
One time, for a football match, I had invited my parents.
That time she made the breakfast
including Kissan jam and sauce for the whole team. I still vividly
remember, we had won that match and the evening the party was thrown by my
parents.
Later, I got little chance to savour the delicacies of my
mother. I became busy with my graduation and post graduation and was two years
overseas for my job. Until there is an
emergency,I don’t get to meet my parents. Even on festivals I am busy and don’t
find time to go and meet my parents. I had thought that once I get married, I
will call them to Pune and we will live together. But since both of us ( me and
my girlfriend) are busy ,the marriage is getting postponed.
Nowadays, I mostly get connected with my parents over
smartphone . We chat over internet. It seems that it is eons that I have seen
my parents in person. As I am talking to you about all these, I really feel
like meeting my parents.
I have taken leave from my office and have come home. Here when I meet my parents in person after
so long time. I feel that age has shown effect on their bodies. I could have
never understood the necessities of the old age had I not come home. But seeing
me at home after so many years, my mom got agile again. She again prepared the
lip-smacking Kissan cuisines and while
devouring all of them I decided in my heart that this time I will take my
parents to Pune with me.
I have been a great fan of movies based on world wars. The
Reader and The sound of Music are among my favorites. I still remember the
hostel days when I used to wait for whole 24 hours for a movie to be
downloaded. But now I don’t have that patience and now I don’t have that
strength either to be awake in night to check the downloading speed.
With the time passing by and new stresses of workload
coming, the stamina of the college days has dwindled. Now I want things on the
net to get downloaded quickly. Though it is not always possible but that is what
I wish. Now I wish a whole movie to get downloaded in a fraction of a second.
During the weekends, I want to watch the movies sprawled in
my bed. But many times, it is not possible. My girlfriend likes long drives.
She being an interior designer has to go to the houses of her clients that are
far from the cities. Many times she is away from the town in order to respect
her professional obligations.
She had shown me the decorated homes. Some were in the
serenity of nature and away from the hustle and bustle of the cities. I also
had a long time cherished dream to dwell in such tranquil houses. But my salary
didn’t allow me to realize my dream.
But as it is said that sometimes god listens to your wishes,
my wish was also listened to by god. One time a client who had a Bungalow in
the woods gave the job of decorating the house to my girlfriend and the best
part was that the client had to be unavailable in India for fifteen days. In
such situation my girlfriend invited me over to see how she works.
I landed up in the scenic beauty of nature with my
girlfriend and her other colleagues. The mist had enveloped the bungalow and
the sweet chirps of the birds were reverberating in the vicinity. I was feeling really ecstatic. While my
girlfriend was busy whole day in her decoration work, I used to take a tour in
the woods. There was a lake nearby and it was an adobe for the foreign birds.
It used to be quite an amazing scene with white feathered birds blanketing the
banks of the lake. I wanted to share this marvelous moment with my friends on
facebook. I took out my cell phone and clicked several pics and made many
videos. I wanted to upload them instantly but my internet connection failed me.
With a sigh I pocketed my cellphone back in my pocket.
After my return I complained about the problematic internet
connection to my girlfriend, in the reply to my complain she handed me over her
cellphone saying that she has the fastest Airtel 4G connection and it would not
fail me. I tried and it was really working fast. I uploaded the pics and videos
on my face book account in a jiffy. I wanted to test the speed of Airtel 4G
further so I tried downloading a movie. Being a world war movie fan I typed the
name : Europa Europa. And to my surprise it got downloaded in just few seconds.
I couldn’t believe my eyes. I was really happy that day, I completed the movie
keeping awake late in the night. It was a great memory watching my favorite
movie in my favorite ambiance. Though, it disturbed my girlfriend a bit but I
persuaded her later.
